


Little Kids

by Oblivion_Devotee



Category: Call of Duty, Call of Duty: Black Ops 3 Zombies
Genre: Other
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2016-09-21
Updated: 2017-09-23
Packaged: 2018-08-16 13:17:23
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 19
Words: 14,344
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/8103922
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Oblivion_Devotee/pseuds/Oblivion_Devotee
Summary: Monty had created a perfect little world for the children. At first there was Eddie and Samantha, and Eddie knew that soon the other children would come. But worrying about the other children was not their biggest problem. There were things Monty nor Maxis had explained to Eddie. Nothing that could prepare him, or the rest of the children. He knew it would happen sooner or later… but it was happening now.





	1. Chapter One

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> It was difficult for him to realize it, he couldn't take it in so quick without any reaction to stop it. He couldn't help but be nervous.

Eddie knew that they were coming. His older self promised to bring them home to Dr. Maxis and Dr. Monty sometime soon. But Eddie couldn't help but be nervous. His palms were sweaty as he rubbed them together. He glanced at Samantha, and she saw that he was anxious. Sam looked so calm though, as if she has done this so many times. The poor girl probably has, considering what she's been through. Eddie and Samantha waited in front of the teleporter with Monty and Maxis. Eddie wiped the sweat pouring down his forehead with his pajama sleeve. "Eddie, you don't have to be so nervous." Samantha watched him with a close eye. Eddie glanced at her. "Oh, yeah… sorry." he replied.

He jumped when he suddenly heard the loud sirens and Monty say, "Well, here they come." Eddie watched as bright blue strikes of lighting hit the teleporter. He remembered it just like when his older version came to discuss the "big" plan with Maxis to save them all. He saw three shadows appear in the gray misty as it reached his feet. The first one to walk out had short brown hair that was slicked back. He looked at Eddie and jumped off. "Hello Dempsey." Monty greeted him. 

Dempsey looked at Monty and then glanced back to Eddie. To him, Dempsey looked strong and intimidating compared to Eddie who was tall and scrawny. He swallowed the knot in his throat as he saw a boy with long black hair come down. He narrowed his eyes at poor Eddie and followed along with Dempsey. "Hello Takeo," Monty said with a smile. The next boy had darkish brown hair that was cut short. He followed Takeo as he glared at Eddie. "And finally, Nikolai."

Eddie glanced at Samantha whom smiled at him, "Eddie, it's not that bad." She began to giggle as she looked back at the kids. "Children," Maxis began, "I want you to show Dempsey, Nikolai, Takeo to their rooms. Samantha, you know to show them around." Samantha nodded as she turned around to the basement staircase. 

She began walking as she gesture for the others to follow. Eddie reluctantly obeyed as he hurried to Samantha. They all went upstairs to Samantha's room. She showed them Eddie's, Dempsey's, Nikolai's, and Takeo's room. All the boys went to their rooms except Eddie, in which he followed Samantha to her room. 

Sam sat down on her bed and watched Eddie as he walked in front of her. "They seem cool." she said casually. Eddie was disgusted at what she said. He didn't like having to meet new people. What if they were like the kids at school, only he would HAVE to see them every single day. 

The kids at school made fun of him because he had the great talent of being a genius, but also being extremely tall and scrawny. He also knew the relationships with the other two versions of themselves. Eddie couldn't help but be afraid and nervous to personally meet the others. 

Eddie looked at Sam with disgust. "Really? Do you even know them?" Sam's eyes followed to the ground as she shrugged her shoulders. She looked sort of embarrassed. "I know the older versions and younger. The older versions… I don't wanna talk about them." Eddie didn't want to bother Sam with anything else. He folded his arms and spun around his head on his neck. 

They both looked at each other for a moment, "Eddie, I'm sorry. If something happens, I'll back you up. I promise." Eddie smiled for a second then frowned when he heard voices outside of the room. Sam didn't seem to notice them. Eddie walked over to the door and began to listen to the conversation. 

"Maxis, don't worry about the children. They are just fine. I'm sure they'll get along just fine."

"I don't know, I'm more concerned about little Eddie. No matter what universe he's in he always manages to make things… complicated. No body trusts the poor child."

"Maxis, I know he's like your son but stop worrying so much."

"Maybe your right Monty."

With that, he heard their footsteps get softer by the second. Eddie felt hurt, for a father figure like Maxis to say something like that about him. He should be worried, he was right. Eddie decided that tomorrow was another day, and to get ready for bed. He climbed into his blue comforter and pulled the sheets up. He sighed softly as he slowly fell into a deep slumber.


	2. Chapter Two

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Eddie obviously knew he wasn't helping himself with the situation. He knew he couldn't ignore it forever, but he kept trying anyways. It was never going to work, and he knew that deep in his heart. The boy was just too stubborn to listen though.

The sun shined brightly through the blue curtains. The soft light woke Eddie up earlier then he expected. His eyes fluttered open. For a moment he laid there in his bed in dead silence. He kicked his covers off and swung his legs over the side of the bed. His hands rubbed his eyes as he slowly came to awareness. The morning seemed normal, but Eddie knew it wasn't. 

No matter how bad he wanted to ignore it, today was the day. He had to face it. Face the fact that he had to meet the other kids. He knew if he ignored them Maxis would make him. But Eddie knew that Maxis cared for him, and only made him do it for his health. Eddie just couldn't help but be nervous about everything, knowing if he did something like his other version he could restart everything. Even though Maxis told Eddie what he thought wasn't true, it's just how Eddie felt. 

Eddie jumped out of bed and walked over to his dresser. He opened the top drawer and grabbed his flannel pajama pants ands shirt. He buttoned them up then headed down stairs. As he walked down he could smell the French Toast on the stove. He walked into the kitchen seeing Maxis flip one of the French toasts. Monty was sitting at the kitchen table eating a plate of them. "Oh, Eddie. I didn't expect you to be up so early." Maxis greeted him.

Eddie sat in a chair across from Monty. "Morning Dr. Monty." Monty smiled as he nodded his head. He scooped up a spoon full of French toast, maple syrup pouring down the sides. Eddie began getting hungry. Maxis placed a plate in front of him with a spoon.

Eddie looked at the golden toast covered with butter and maple syrup freshly made. The syrup slowly oozed off the toast all over his plate and fork. He picked up his fork and began to cut his breakfast up and take a few bites. The toast melted in his mouth, the syrup and butter flavour crashing together with the brown taste of the toast. It all was just so good.

He turned around when he heard footsteps. Dempsey stood in the doorway as he looked at each and everyone in the room. His face looked miserable, but from seeing the older versions of their selves he always seemed miserable. Dempsey walked past Eddie and sat in the chair next to him. Dempsey glanced up at Eddie then back down.

Eddie continued to watch Dempsey. He looked uncomfortable and upset. "Morning Dempsey, how was you first," Monty paused as he smiled, "night here?" Dempsey looked at Monty surprised for a moment. "Oh, yeah. It was fine" he said simply. Maxis put a plate in front of Dempsey. He stared at it for a second before glancing at Eddie. "Is there a problem Richtofen?" he said harshly.

Eddie nodded his head rapidly, "N-no, just, uh, good morning." Dempsey continued to shoot Eddie dirty looks as he picked up his fork and began to eat. Eddie glanced at Maxis then back at his plate. He pushed it forward and mumbled, "I think I'm finished."

Eddie stood up and walked out of the room. He felt so embarrassed in front of Dempsey, but he knew he had to make things right. Eddie went upstairs into the wall way. He wasn't paying any attention, only thinking of what happened downstairs. He bumped into something and bounced back, loosing his balance. He fell to the floor with a plop. 

He looked up and saw Nikolai standing in front of him. He gave out his hand to help poor Eddie up. He was so nervous that his hand shook as his boney hands grasped onto Nikolai's. Nikolai pulled Eddie up, "Sorry, are you alright?" Eddie was stunned by how strong the little boy's Russian accent was. Eddie brushed himself off and fixed his clothes, "Yeah, sorry."

"No need to be sorry friend, we all make mistakes." he replied.

"Your nicer to me than I expected." Eddie scratched the back of his head.

"If we are to stay in a house together, we must get along. We are not exactly like our other versions, so let's not follow in their footsteps."

Eddie nodded, "Agreed." 

Eddie didn't feel any better about meeting the new kids, even if Nikolai was being some what kind. He told Nikolai breakfast was downstairs with Monty, Maxis, and Dempsey. It was honestly only an excuse to get away and hide in his room. He knew that if he ignored trying to get along with the children would only make everything worst for him. He couldn't help but be nervous.


	3. Chapter Three

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> He didn't want to believe it at first, but in the end he did. Although, it still continued to nag at him everytime.

Eddie sat on the floor in his room by himself. He thought if maybe he sat in his room it'd be obvious he doesn't want to play with the other kids. He was preoccupied anyway and a little stressed at the moment. He couldn't switch his thoughts off of the other children. He was so nervous that his hands were shaky, and if he didn't deal with his problems head on he knew they were just going to get worst for him. 

He was startled when he heard the soft squeal of the door knob turning. The door opened slowly to a crack as Maxis's head peeked out and looked for Eddie. His eyes followed around the room until he finally found him sitting on the floor. A warm smile appeared on his face as he walked in and slowly closed the door behind him. He turned and stared at Eddie for a moment.

Eddie wondered why Maxis came to him. His smile faded as he walked over to the twin sized bed against the wall, sort of a style like Samantha's room. He fixed his lab coat before sitting down. The silence was slowly killing Eddie, crushing him with anticipation. Maxis seemed to open his mouth to say something, stopped then continued, "Eddie, I need to talk to you about something important." Already, Eddie knew what this was about. He knew that sooner or later Maxis would be so concerned about him to personally talk about their current situation. 

"I feel… Hmm. Do you like the other children Eddie?" Maxis asked, seeming a little bit stumped.

Eddie shrugged his shoulders as he broke the eye contact between the two. He couldn't stand to look at him any more, he felt it quickly get awkward. "Eddie, look at me and answer the question." He obeyed and looked at Maxis's ocean blue eyes. He didn't know how to answer, he didn't have one. Again, he shrugged his shoulders trying to divert the question. "Eddie, I feel you don't like them. I know this is new for you, but I'm sure you'll all get along just fine. Please, try and get along with the other children." 

Eddie looked at Maxis and nodded. Maxis stood up and walked to the door. With a smile and a nod, he left the room. Eddie was once again alone in his room. It was silent once again, making Eddie feel lonely in the moment. He realized how important it was for him to meet the others, he realized it more than he had before.

He was startled again when the door made the same noise as before, just it flung right open to Samantha running through. She obviously forgot about personal space, almost as always. Eddie stared at her wide-eyed. She ran in and jumped on his bed, "Hey Eddie." 

He watched as the other kids entered the room, Dempsey with a glare on his face, Takeo rubbing his eyes and looking tired, and lastly Nikolai waving to Eddie. Nikolai and Eddie already seemed to be on good terms since this morning. Eddie waved back to Nikolai. 

The children all sat down around Eddie. Samantha crawled over to a box under Eddie's bed. She pulled it out and opened it. The box was full of zombies, Panzer Soldats, toy versions of them, and much more. They began playing, and obviously it was Eddie's turn, just as Samantha promised. "Since it's my turn, their eyes will be blue." Eddie said quite proudly.

"What? No they should be purple," Takeo replied.

"I like green with them, matches their ugly faces," Dempsey continued.

"Why not orange?" Nikolai asks.

Lastly, Samantha went, "I think they should have yellow eyes."

All the kids were startled when they heard a familiar voice say, "I think they should be red." They all turned to the door and saw Monty standing in the opening of the door. His hands were behind his back as he gracefully watched over the children with a smile. Eddie looked around him, and a strange, familiar voice in the back of his head spoke. It was the man he felt was a father,

Maxis…

And he said clearly in the back of Eddie's mind,

"Everything will be alright…"


	4. Chapter Four

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> What he said touched Eddie dearly. Even if things would backfire in the end it was still a good moment to have.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> In this chapter I put like one or two little easter eggs from things like cutscenes and trailers from Black Ops 3, I wanted to see if anyone could find them. Thanks for reading, leaving comments, and Kudos. This really means so much to me that I just started this book and I'm getting so much appreciation. Thank you and I really hope you guys enjoy this one!

He flung himself up so quick he thought he felt his brain hit the front of his skull. His thoughts ravaged through his head, flooding him with confusion. The room was so dark and dull that it felt like forever for Eddie to come to his senses. He started breathing heavily and having difficulty breathing. He looked to his side and saw a short black figure with a two white glares from the dim light of the moon coming through the window. The moon barely gave any light to identify who was the figure.

The figure placed their cold, bony hands on Eddie's gaunt shoulder. Eddie started gasping for air as he began to freak out. The hand reluctantly wanted to moved but instead just moved slightly to the side. The bony fingers gripped tighter on Eddie's shoulder. "Calm! Calm down, Richtofen." 

Eddie took a long gasp of air, "Stop it Edward… Breath… MAXIS!" Eddie almost screamed when another hand cupped over his mouth. The figure now hovered above him, "Calm down German! What do you have, 'let's-freak-out-in-the-middle-of-the-night-logosis'?" The voice almost seemed familiar, like a mature child. It was deep for a twelve year old, sounded bash and rough. There was only one person he knew shared the same voice as this man.

Tank Dempsey. Eddie grabbed his shirt and pulled him close to his face. "What are you doing in my room? What time is it anyway?" Dempsey moved his hand from Eddie's face and shoulder. The kid seemed a bit annoyed by Eddie at this point, maybe it was because of Eddie's screaming. Eddie sat up and looked at the dark figure in front of him. He was always afraid of all the different Dempseys, even this one. 

He could feel the strange look Dempsey must have been giving him, the one he gave all the other versions of Eddie. "It's just about one in the morning." Dempsey's sudden burst of words startled Little Eddie. Eddie looked at Dempsey shocked, "But I need to talk to you Richtofen."

Eddie was confused on why Dempsey would want to talk to him. He also couldn't stand the fact that Dempsey called him Richtofen. He wasn't Richtofen, he was Eddie. He wasn't the crazed scientist who was known as "The Butcher." No, that wasn't him. He didn't want to be like that ever. But, as nice as Eddie was, he knew that Dempsey just would always have that sort of habit no matter what universe.

"Why do you want to talk to me?" Eddie asked sheepishly.

Eddie heard Dempsey sigh in frustration. "Do you always ask questions?" Dempsey sighed again, this time not of annoyance, "I don't know, no matter how much I hate to admit this German. But when our intellect is compared, I barely match. Survival and Guns," he chuckled, "that's a whole other story."

"I'm surprised you even know intellect." Dempsey playfully nudged Eddie for his swellheaded response. Dempsey continued, "I'm confused Doc, why am I here? What is happening? Why is this happening? What is all of this, please tell me." Eddie was overthrown by all the questions. He tried to take one at a time to ease himself. "You're here just like all of us. We haven't been corrupted with the darkness like Samantha, our other versions, Maxis, even Monty. Monty says we can start anew when all the zombies are gone. For your other questions, Maxis and Monty won't talk to me about it for some reason." Eddie smirked as he looked at Dempsey all worried, "Do you always ask questions, Dempsey?" Dempsey nudged Eddie again as he gave him a quick smile.

"You know Doc, your not as bad as I imagined. But remember, that doesn't mean we're friends. Got it?" Eddie nodded his head rapidly. He felt the bed rise as Dempsey slid down onto the floor. Eddie was touched by Dempsey's words. He knew that in the inside, Dempsey was soft and fragile. "Night Dempsey." Without even looking back Dempsey replied, "Night Richtofen." With that Dempsey walked out and softly closed the door as it made a click sound.

Eddie turned in his bed and pulled his covers up. He sat there for a moment concentrating on what Dempsey had just said. It didn't take long for Eddie to fall fast asleep, though. He began dreaming of what it would finally be like when the zombies and madness was all gone. What killed Eddie was how real the dream seemed, but in all reality it seemed so impossible.


	5. Chapter Five

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> They would come sooner then Eddie had thought, maybe Monty was right about Eddie's other selves. Both were determined, and got the job done. But he never knew someone shared almost the same feelings as Eddie.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sorry for the long wait guys, I was sort of busy with school and just had big writers block so I'm sorry if this chapter is a little off. I will try and update it a bit. I hope you guys enjoy and thank you!
> 
> 10-12-16  
> Hey, so today I'm updating the notes from when I first published the chapter. I did spruce it up a bit like I promised, adding more details that will support the next chapter. Even if you read it I'd suggest you read it again for the new updates.

Eddie's eyes fluttered open to the blinding light coming from the window of his room. The room was bright and colourful, not like last night. Eddie couldn't tell if last time was a dream or if it was real. He pushed his covers off and swung his legs over the side of his bed. His arms stretched long as a soft yawn escaped the lips of his mouth. He took a deep breath and exhaled in relieve. 

Eddie didn't feel as nervous as before. He seemed to be okay with Nikolai and Dempsey, but he didn't know about Takeo. Takeo was a strong kid, even in the other universes. He knew that it wasn't going to be easy with Takeo. This made him nervous again. What if he messed up like he always did? 

Eddie began having negative thoughts ravaging through his head. They wouldn't stop nagging the poor kids insides. He was suddenly startled when he heard a loud, high pitched scream. The name instantly registered in his brain. "Samantha!" he shouted as he darted out of his room.

He took a sharp turn, his feet stumbling upon each other almost making him slip. He lost balance but his hand reached to the door and grabbed the knob. The knob, without hesitation, opened and pulled Eddie forward. He slipped forward and face planed to the floor. He looked up and scanned the room for Samantha.

He was shocked. Why did he make such a big fuss over this? It wasn't even worth it. Dempsey was carrying Sam wedding style as he tossed her on her bed. She shrieked followed by both of the children's giggles. Dempsey looked at Eddie and nodded. Eddie only waved, "Morning guys…" he mumbled quietly. Sam's smiled suddenly faded. Dempsey looked at Sam and his did too. 

Dempsey nodded at Samantha and left in a hurry. Eddie was confused, did they know something he didn't? Sam slid herself closer to the edge of the bed and sat up, looking glum, staring at the ground. Eddie frowned his eyebrows as he took a step closer. Sam looked up at him, "Eddie, they're coming back…"

Eddie knew what she meant, and he didn't think so soon. Did they really work that quickly since Gorod Krovi? Eddie thought that Samantha was crazy, insane even. It's only been three days since the children came. Eddie had so many questions to ask but only one came out, "When?" 

"Tomorrow… day after… very soon. I'd suggest you get to personally meet Takeo before anything. Daddy doesn't know what'll happen after the zombies are all gone. He only said he was glad I went back in time to set everything right, either this would have never happened."

Eddie sighed, he was nervous all over again. He nodded and obeyed Sam. He turned around and walked out, closing the door behind him. He was startled when Dempsey came up to his face, "Careful Richtofen, I don't know what your evil twins have been doing, but they better not influence you into some bull crap."

Eddie nodded, getting confused like always. He passed Dempsey and walked up to Takeo's room door. For a moment he stood there, thinking about what he would say to Takeo, what he would do. Eddie placed his hand on the door and slowly opened it. Takeo sat on the edge of his bed looking rather upset. 

He quickly looked up at Eddie wide eyed with shock. Eddie stood in the doorway for a moment, before feeling a bit comfortable to take a step in. "Morning Eddie." he mumbled softly. Eddie responded with the same as he walked closer to Takeo.

"I hear that the other ones come soon," Takeo began, "I feel that we both are not ready to redeem our fate. Both of us feel… differently then the other children. You aren't the only one who feels this?"

Eddie didn't know how Takeo knew, but he told exactly how Eddie felt. He didn't know he wasn't the only one concerned or nervous about everything. Takeo may have been alright meeting the children, but the madness would be all gone soon and they might have to pay. Pay in a way that is not their lives, but what they felt. It was a bond between Takeo and Eddie, in which Eddie felt he could trust Takeo.


	6. Chapter 6

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> It was sweet that they all got along, but what happened in the basement was a whole other shit show. I mean Maxis and myself are working our butts of for those children. Apparently, according to Maxis "I'm a child," huh, I'll show him after my perfect world is saved.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Again... sorry this was super late. It's a little choppy and cheesy, but that mostly the point.
> 
> 10-26-16  
> Updated the part that was choppy in my eyes, adding a bit more details in to it... now, I can start the next chapter

Friday, September 30, 2016  
2:48 PM

It was shorter time span then he expected. He didn't realize how quick, how sudden everything was going. Gladly, it was all running smoothly. All he wanted was for the children, his daughter, to be safe forever. The madness would soon corrupt them if it wasn't stopped. Although, he knew some of the risks they were all going to take. It was coming soon, their demise. It would all end soon. 

***

Eddie sat on the maroon couch in the living room with the other children beside him. He felt nervous once again, like always. Maxis calling the children down to the living room, interrupting Takeo and Eddie's touching moment, seemed strange. The amount of concern in Maxis' voice only sickened Eddie. He didn't think this news was going to be good at all. 

Eddie looked at his surroundings, all the children looked so depressed. Looking down at the ground with pessimistic thoughts. Eddie looked up hearing the soft footsteps. Maxis stood looking at the children with his hands behind his back. Maxis looked at all the children, in which returned the stare. 

He sighed before he began, "Children, I understand you are anxious for all this to be over, and I promise it will be… soon. Sooner then you all may imagine, Dr. Monty and myself will be in the basement if you need us. I believe that all of you know who is coming, yes?" All the children nodded their heads.

Eddie jumped when he heard a loud bang. Maxis looked behind him to the basement door. "Maxis! Get the hell down here!" Monty screamed followed by a cough. Maxis turned to the children, "I'll see you all to night, Dr. Monty needs my help." Before Maxis left Monty screamed up again, "NOW!" with a few crashes. Maxis hurried to the basement door, "What have you done now? I told you not to touch anything. Nein! Eddie listens better then you!" Eddie looked at all the other children. Eddie decided to say something, make it less awkward. "I think that Panzer Soldat is going to get us if we don’t save Nikolai."

Sam looked up and Eddie. Her grim expression faded away with a smile. Her sweet grin warmed Eddie's heart. "Yeah, we can't let him get Nikolai." she playfully nudged Nikolai beside her. At first, he seemed confused but he suddenly began to smile at her. "Hey Tak, better safe your boyfriend!" Dempsey snickers. Takeo jumped on top of him and rustled with Dempsey.

Eddie looked around him, he changed their moods so quick, so fast that it really warmed his heart. Maybe it was all going to be okay. That it was all a misunderstanding. Eddie awkwardly stood there for a moment before Sam jumped on top of him. She pinned him to the ground as she chuckled, "See Eddie, it's not that bad." Eddie smiled wide as he pushed Sam over. Before he could pin her Dempsey wrapped his arms around Eddie's neck and took hit down over Sam.

Nikolai and Takeo rustled with each other. Fluffy came up and began to lick Eddie face. He began to laugh as he moved his head side to side trying to get the dog away. "Get 'em Fluffy! Yeah!" Dempsey chanted on top of Eddie. All the children were laughing as Fluffy continuously licked Eddie's face. 

Later that night, they decided to listen to an old audio log of a horror movie that Maxis had. They all sat in Sam's room as they listened. It was about two hours long, and about 11 at night. Maxis wouldn't let the children listen to stuff like this, so they had to do it in a furtive manner. 

They listened to it in the dark with only a candle next to the radio. Eddie and Dempsey sat close together as they listened, shaking in their pajamas. They continued to hear shrilled screams that sounded like nails on chalkboards, one long one after a short one. After, it cut to a different scene. The woman in the log was with a man. They were both breathing heavy. The children knew this was something inappropriate, but they all seem more interested in the movie. Even Sam, maybe the boys more so.

Takeo and Sam seemed neutral, but Eddie, Dempsey, and Nikolai leaned closer to the radio. "Please," she begged, "don't make me do this, my mother would never forgive me." They heard kissing and soft moans from the girl. "Come on, it can't be all that bad." the man said. It then trailed off with noises that interested the boys. It soon came with clapping noises and loud moans from the girl, followed by static from the old log. The guy mumbled things under his breath a he groan and moaned as well. They then heard nails scraping off dry sky, supposedly her running her nails down his back. "This sounds like when I use to come home from school with Eddie and we use to hear my dad and Sophia make noises like this."

"Did you listen through the door?" Dempsey whispered as both him and Nikolai leaned closer to Eddie. Eddie smiled devilishly and nodded, glad Takeo and Sam didn’t hear what they were saying. The scene lasted about five minutes before one of the monsters in the movie ate the boy and the girl. A half hour later the log ended with everyone dying.


	7. Chapter 7

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> It finally would be the end... or would it? Is this really where Eddie's life ended. They were going to save him...

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This one I worked really hard on and made sure it wasn't too choppy and had just the right amount of details and thoughts on Eddie. That's why it took so long, but hope its good for you guys to enjoy!

Loud sirens deafened the small ears in the room. They all jumped up in surprise and fright as they looked around. Monty came in the room, flinging the door open quick and wide. "Children, they are not here. It was only Maxis' bloody experiment that went wrong and the damn smoke alarms went off." he suddenly paused and looked across the frightened faces of the children, "Although, they will be coming around sometime today and tomorrow." Eddie's heart began to race. He couldn’t tell if it was from excitement or nervousness. Either way, he didn't like the vibe the feeling gave him.

Sam and Eddie exchanged looks. She looked like she felt the same as him, flustered and lost. They both returned to Monty whom soon left, mumbling under his breath. Eddie stood up and looked around. Takeo's eyes were wide as he stared into Eddie's soul. It was a weird feeling to be looked upon like that. 

There was a sudden bang from downstairs that shook the house. Eddie looked over at the door as they began to hear more sirens. Then there was a yell from Maxis, "Children!" Eddie and Sam exchanged another glance as the others rushed pass them. Eddie looked at Sam with wide eyes. His hand hovered out in front of her, folded out waiting for her. Her cold hand gripped his, letting him pull her up.

Eddie wouldn't let her hand go though. They both walked out of the room side by side, hands clenched together. Eddie and Sam walked downstairs to the living room holding hands. They sat down on one of the couches, watching the tall shadows from the basement creep up. 

Eddie clenched Sam's hand tighter and tighter by the second. He hope she didn't mind, because his mind was racing. Heart was pounding. Hands were shaking. He knew that she would understand, for all he's been though. For what she had been through.

The first person to walk out of the shadows was lanky, sporting a mustache with dark black hair and vibrant blue eyes. Behind him was a man slightly shorter than the first, brown slicked hair and trimmed mustache. Next, with a brown goatee and heavy armour. Lastly, black hair pulled tight into a small bun and facial hair, wearing ripped clothing. 

Eddie didn't know what to do. He was shocked, astonished even. And most of all nervous, very nervous. Last time his older self came, he only talked to Maxis about the "plan". Eddie never met "Richtofen" personally, but Eddie felt like he didn’t need to considering they were both the same person. Only Eddie wanted to meet "Richtofen". 

Thing was, Eddie was taken from Richtofen's soul, just as the other children. But the older ones really lived being a kid, and the souls just had the memories. Eddie had so many questions about what happened to Richtofen, what it physically felt like to be where it all happened.

Dempsey, Nikolai, and Takeo seemed shocked, except Richtofen. He's seen them before, but only Eddie. He slightly nodded, "Maxis, I see the other souls made it to they house, ja?" Maxis came up behind Richtofen and nodded. They exchanged glances to each other before looking back at the children. "Glad Samantha made it here from Agartha."

"Yes, she is doing better. I only wish Sophia was here to be with us." Maxis responded.

Richtofen turned around to the group of astonished men. Dempsey, behind him, frowned his eyebrows whilst keeping his focus on his little one. In a way he looked slightly disturbed, but all the while amazed. He pushed Richtofen to the side as he stepped forward, never letting his eyes shift. Eddie looked to the other end of Samantha to see little Dempsey. He looked shy and a bit frightened in all.

In Eddie's peripheral vision he saw that Sam was watching him. He looked up at her, Sam's eyes were bright with wonder and creation. But it then suddenly hit him, hit her too. She was an actual child, she had no further self that really existed in the present. She was the living child of the group, unlike the rest. Eddie knew why Samantha was looking at him like that, she knew too. 

Eddie leaned back to the soft cushion of the couch. His eyes followed back to were the group of men were. Monty pushed through the men murmuring, "Bloody manners, will you?" When he got to the front he fixed his jacket and scarf into a comfortable position than the last. 

Maxis looked at the men then to all the children, "I never realized how much you guys never changed from being a child." It seemed like he tried to lighten the mood but it didn't necessarily work. Eddie looked around, the couch across from him was Nikolai and Takeo looking at their future selves. Next to him, holding his hand tightly, Sam looking straight ahead into a gaze of space. Next to her was Dempsey, looking into the eyes of his new self, giving the same look now.


	8. Chapter 8

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> It was the strangest thing for Eddie. Was this truly happening to him? Could this even be possible?

Eddie sat on his bed, looking in to the vibrant blue eyes he remembered from not to long ago. Neither one of them said anything for a long while. It was just long gazes into each others eyes. Eddie was surprised when he suddenly grabbed him. His lanky arms wrapped tight around him like nothing ever mattered. Eddie was fluster, he never felt something so special from someone. It wasn't the father-like hugs Maxis gave him occasionally. It was something more than all that.

Coming from someone like him though was a whole other story. He never did this, only to Maxis. The man who hated to talk about his problems and feelings was hugging him. Eddie didn't like to either, considering they were the same person. Eddie reluctantly wrapped his around Richtofen. 

Once he got comfortable Eddie nuzzled his head into Richtofen's neck. He seemed so calm, all his worries melting away like nothing. Without Eddie even realizing a tear rolled down the side of his cheek. It rolled down to his chin and dropped onto the soft vest Richtofen wore. It was still silent and calm.

"I know you were only doing the right thing, for our better tomorrow." Eddie murmured in Richtofen's ear. Richtofen hugged him tighter, his shoulders shuttering slightly. Another tear ran from the corner of Eddie's eye. Then more came down into a stream on his face. Eddie hugged slightly tighter.

Richtofen's hands rubbed Eddie's back in comfort. "I will make it better." Richtofen murmured in Eddie's ear. Eddie could hear his voice slightly crack with desperation. "You promise?" Eddie asked softly. There was a long pause before anything happened. "Yes," he muttered softly, "I promise." 

Eddie's body slowly went limb in Richtofen's arms. He felt so safe for once. Richtofen slowly moved back as he wrapped his hands around Eddie's shoulders. Eddie, still limb, moved forward with Richtofen. If it wasn't for him holding Eddie up, Eddie would have fell forward. 

Richtofen's grip disappeared and let Eddie fall forward into his chest. His face pressed against Richtofen as he pondered, tears continuing to come down. He slowly looked up and saw the vibrant blue eyes red and puffy, a nose red and long. But he would never forget that white smile he hid from every person he ever knew.

The smile was warm and soft, beautiful to the eyes. It seemed so strange to look at, and yet so hard to imagine. Eddie stared blankly at him for a moment before smiling back. Richtofen's face relaxed a bit, coming more to a frown. Seeing the same thing Eddie saw a second ago. To Eddie it looked like Richtofen felt the same way as him moments ago.

"What was it like being a kid?" Eddie asked. Their was a really long pause this time. Richtofen looked at him and never said a thing for more than a while. Silence filled the air without a sound. "It was horrible, if you can see the memories, you should know the pain. The orphanage was just horrible, even harder with my parents dead. I still remember crushing my sister's dolls to make her cry, I only wish I never did that today."

This was odd, he was talking about his feelings. Was it because they were really the same person. Eddie knew what happened, but to test his limits he asked what happened to her. Richtofen seemed to catch on to Eddie's mischief but continued on anyway. "They killed her," he growled, "The children there called us liars. Scrawled on the walls, 'Eddie is a liar.' That's the day a group of a boys and girls beat her to death to 'teach' us a lesson." A small tear formed in his eye, finally gaining enough mass to escape down to his chin.

Another tear rolled down the side of Eddie's cheek. "She's somewhere better now…" Richtofen looked deep into Eddie's crystal eyes. "I suppose so, it'd keep her safe from 115…" Eddie and Richtofen were startled when both Dempsey's came in. Richtofen quickly whipped his eyes as he stood up. "Dempsey, what could you possibly want now?" 

"To talk to Eddie." he answered quickly. Richtofen looked surprised, eyes wide and jaw dropped. He shifted his vest as he mumbled, "Very well then." and with that Little Dempsey and Richtofen left the room. Dempsey and Eddie watched them exit, then Eddie turned to Dempsey. Dempsey still watched the others leave before looking back at Eddie. Eddie felt his hands shaking against his frigid body.


	9. Chapter 9

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> There was no telling what was going to happened to any of them... maybe no matter how much Eddie ran from it, he'd always be the genius nervous wreck that was awkward and left behind. And maybe it got to him more than he thought...

Dempsey stared at Eddie for a long while. Their eyes locked tight into a stare for what seemed like forever. Eddie finally broke it when he stared down at the ground. The tears hanging on to his waterline glimmered and blurred him vision. He knew that neither Dempsey liked any of the Richtofens. It was just in their nature.

Eddie could hear movement from Dempsey as he walked closer. The bed suddenly sank in beside him as Dempsey sat down. Eddie didn't want to look up, he was way to nervous. His tremble soon went to a quick shaking in his whole body. Eddie couldn't help but feel frightened of Dempsey, the man who held the top record of one handed push ups even in the universe where everyone only has one arm.

"So tell me 'Eddie', why do you seem to be so nervous around me?" Dempsey's rough, deep voice scraped across Eddie's face. He began to shake even more to a point were it looked like he was having a seizer. Eddie jumped when a overly large hand was placed on his shoulder. "I-I-I, um, I, uh, don't know. I'm-I'm not, hmm, nervous."

Dempsey sighed, Eddie could feel his eyes staring into the very depth of him. Did he think that Eddie was the same as Richtofen? "Listen Eddie, you may be the same sick and twisted Richtofen that I've known for the past two years. But that doesn’t mean I don't like you. As much as I hate to admit this, Richtofen is pretty alright. Strange, but alright."

Before Dempsey said another word Eddie cut him off, "I promise not to tell anyone. " Eddie finally looked up at Dempsey. He looked into Dempsey's eyes as he looked back into Eddie's. His crystal blue eyes glimmered under the dim lighting. For the first time he saw Dempsey smile, pearly white teeth that brightened the room.

Eddie returned the smile gradually. Dempsey stood up and looked at the door, "We should go before the others get suspicious. They get like that." Eddie stood up and followed Dempsey out of the room. All the children and adults stood outside in the hall. Eddie's smile was quickly taken when he noticed the looks the older Nikolai and Takeo gave Richtofen.

Eddie looked up at Richtofen whom looked guilty as ever. He felt a bit scared, what happened the few moments Eddie and Dempsey are alone? Monty then came up behind Takeo and Nikolai from the stairs. Nikolai and Eddie exchanged looks, "You never change Richtofen. You look same today as younger as older."

"I don't know if that is a compliment or insult Nikolai…"

"I hope Eddie does not lead down the same path as you Richtofen." Takeo watched Eddie. Eddie felt frightened, he didn't want to be another psycho. He wanted to prove to everyone that'd he'd make it far more than his older self. It seemed ridiculous and impossible, but he was determined.

He looked at everyone in the hall. There faces began to mold together in waves, moving, breathing. He felt his whole world spin. He then felt lightheaded. He began to wobble in small circles, going round and round oh so slightly. He suddenly couldn’t think, couldn't breath, couldn't scream for help. His earing was suddenly going fast, ringing sharp squeals in his ear that seemed ever lasting and louder by the minute.

What was happening to him? Eddie's vision was starting to mold together and blur quick by the second. He couldn't hear, see, think, breath anymore. He never felt so dizzy in his whole life. He tried to gasp for air but he felt too tired. He felt his legs go limb and let him fall. 

He felt arms wrap around him, catching his sudden collapse. He looked up to see a mold of colours that reminded him of Richtofen. Maybe that's who caught him, it only made sense that he was close. He saw a bunch of figures surround him. The children, the adults, he couldn't tell where Monty or Maxis where. 

He then heard a distorted yell that sounded like "Mm-ur-on-ee! M-ohhh-is!" in Richtofen's voice. Deep, hallow, and just worry. Before long Eddie blacked out, his world slowly fading to black. There was no telling what was going to happen.


	10. Chapter 10

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Maybe it'll be all gone soon. Eddie was known to worry to much, but was this really yet to happen? Maybe worrying would cause more than he had anticipated...

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sorry this one is a bit shorter, I just felt I had to rush it because it's almost been a week-ish or so when I last updated.

Quick breaths, heavy, short, quick breaths inhaled at a paste that it almost choked him. Yet the boy still couldn't see right. His vision was still as blurry as ever, and he couldn't make out the figures around him. They couldn't have been the other children… or adults. He could only see Maxis or Monty, even Richtofen who would ever care to check up on Eddie. He was surprised… it seemed the only thing that worked.

"Is child okay?" he heard a deep, rough Russian accent carve through his ears. It was almost terrifying yet all the while amazing to Eddie. It was Nikolai, why was he here to check on Eddie. He never liked Richtofen, except for a little while when it was their much older selves. This time, Nikolai despised Richtofen with a burning passion. It almost seemed they all wished to put a bullet to his brain.

"Why did Edward get to have all the fun?" he could hear Dempsey at Der Riese, or "The Giant". It upset Eddie that it never really went down like that, he actually made himself laugh. That's when he heard more voices. This one still rough, but sounded so calm and smooth. "Hey, he smiling. Do you think he'll be okay, doc?" This time it was Dempsey.

The next voice he heard warmed his heart. "Well, I'm sure he'll be fine. Only this has never actually 'happened' before…" Eddie's vision started to clear up now. He saw everyone he expected not too. Nikolai, Dempsey, Richtofen, Takeo, Dr. Monty. But the kids, there weren't here. 

Eddie quick sat up and looked around. He started to panic again. "Eddie no!" Maxis shouted. "Lay down before you get yourself bloody killed." Monty finished. Maxis glanced at Monty and back at Eddie. Eddie took deep breathes as he laid back down, trying to relax. 

Eddie was too tired to even question anything at the moment. "Maxis, you didn't answer me. Tell me, will he be okay?" Nikolai got really close to Maxis's face, as if he were about to start a fight with the elder man. Maxis simply nodded and faked a grin. Nikolai stood a step back while eyeing the doctor. 

"Little Eddie here will be just fine for the time being. He had a mere anxiety attack." Maxis replied. Dempsey glanced at Richtofen in the corner of the room. Richtofen looked down to the ground, seeming rather embarrassed or guilty. Dempsey walked passed Takeo. Their shoulders brushed against each other.

Takeo's eyes followed Dempsey before he lost him in his peripheral vision. Takeo looked dead at Eddie and narrowed his eyes. Eddie felt himself sinking in his bed. He was nervous once again, he could feel his heart beating out of his chest. "Eddie doesn't seem like a bad kid. He doesn't talk a lot like Richtofen." Takeo said. 

He turned around and walked out of the room. Nikolai and Dempsey followed Takeo out of the room as well. Maxis looked at Monty and Richtofen. Monty raised his eyebrow then left the room along with the others. Richtofen and Maxis were left.

Eddie glanced at Richtofen then back to Maxis. Both were looking rather upset. Richtofen looked up at Maxis and paused for a long while. Eddie wanted to say something, but he was trying to get his breath back. Maxis looked up from his fiddling thumbs to Richtofen. 

They both stared at each other for a minute before saying another word. "I'm sorry Maxis." Maxis only smiled at him. "I'll tell you the same thing I tell Eddie. 'Everything will be alright'," Maxis put his hand on Richtofen's shoulder. Tears streamed down the man's face before he collapsed into Maxis's arms. He hugged him tightly, his langy arms wrapped all around the man.

Eddie felt something that felt strange to him. It was overwhelming, but he definitely knew it wasn't jealousy. Maybe he felt happy for them, Eddie didn't understand since through all his years he's never dealt, or even encountered really, something like this. 

He then began to think to himself. What if this was all gone. Suddenly taken away from him all over again. He's only been through so much. He stopped breathing, and his vision faded to black. The last thing he remembered seeing Maxis and Richtofen hugging.


	11. Chapter 11

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> It was time to wake up, to finally talk and realize stuff. What was wrong with Eddie that Maxis wouldn't tell him. As smart as Eddie was, he knew it was serious.

He pasted out once again. His vision was dark, and yet again he was out like a light bulb. He didn't want to be, he wanted to see again. Be able to stand, and he sworn it had been days since the last time he woke up. Or so it felt like it. It was a big relieve when he was able to escape all the vivid dreams he was stuck with. His eyes fluttered open, took him awhile to adjust to the soft lighting. His vision was still blurry, so when he saw Tank, he was more confused than ever.

It was the child soul, sitting in the chair next to the bed Eddie had laid in. His heads in his hands and he sat there mumbling softly. He looked stressed and perturbed at the moment. Eddie's hands were shaky as he reached out slowly. He put his hand on the child's shoulder. His reaction was quick, Dempsey turned and grabbed Eddie's wrist.

His eyes were wide, red and puffy. Veins popping out of the flanks of his head and through his arms. The tendon in his wrist exploded out of his arm. Eddie jumped back a bit from Dempsey's reaction. Dempsey stared at him for a minute before slowly letting go of his arm. 

Eddie could feel the pressure relieve. "tut mir leid." Eddie mumbled. Dempsey frowned his eye brows in confusion. Eddie nodded his head in a gesture to say, "Never mind…" Dempsey raised his eyebrow and looked straight ahead of him. Eddie looked up to ceiling and sighed.

He was disturbed when he heard a sudden bark of sound. It rocked the stillness in the air. "You okay?" Tank mumbled. It amazed Eddie to hear those soft words escape his mouth. He slowly turned his head over to Dempsey, whom now stared at him. 

His eyes looked so hollow, like Eddie could stare deep within the wisdoms of his soul. Eddie was disturbed by this. A man, a boy, who hid all his emotions… to look… to sound tough… was asking how he was doing. Eddie's eyes were wide, and he didn't say anything for a while. The surprise had taken his words. 

Still, for a while he couldn't say anything but to nod his head. And soon enough after he mumbled the soft, "Yeah," that was almost unable to be heard. They sat there in a long moments silence. It was awhile for Eddie dared to say anything, "How long has it been?"

Dempsey didn't respond for a bit. It only killed Eddie slowly inside. Did anyone even care that he was out? That's when those awful thoughts started rushing through his head again. Maybe the children and their conversations were so gauche because they didn't like him. 

Maybe Monty only pretended to care with his senseless attitude. Maybe Richtofen lied to Eddie like he always had. Almost all his anxiety came crashing down on him, crushed the poor, dear, helpless child. He began to breath heavy again, feeling like he was choking all over again.

Dempsey jumped up and placed his hands on Eddie's chest, as if that was going to help him breath again. "Hey, hey, calm down!" he barked. Eddie's eyes were wide as he attempted to take deep breaths, "I… can't… breath…" he muttered in short breaths. 

Dempsey looked like he was about to panic. His eyes were wide, the vein popping out of his head. "MAXIS!" he yelled. Suddenly the door few open with Maxis rushing in. He looked over and saw Lil Dempsey and Eddie. "Dear Eddie!" he mumbled under his breath. Maxis rushed to Eddie's side.

"Calm down, calm now Edward!" Maxis repeated. Maxis slid his hand under Eddie's head, "Just breathe." Eddie soon was able to breathe again, but he hated the feeling. Eddie closed his eyes as he took deep, long breaths. "Now Edward, don't worry." But that's all he thought about. What to worry about, and to worry. He had to worry, it was just natural to him. He hated that feeling though. To worry all the time. 

He stared up at Maxis, heaving steady breathes. Maxis smiled down on Eddie for a few seconds before looking back at little Dempsey. "Thank you, Dempsey," he mumbled and nodded. Dempsey nodded back at Maxis then focused back to playing with his fingers.

Maxis glanced at Eddie before walking away. Eddie continued to just lay back. "Three days at least…" Dempsey finally replied. Eddie gasped and Dempsey jumped up. "I'm fine, I'm fine." Eddie muttered. Dempsey chuckled and sighed as he sat back down on his seat. 

"So, did you find it weird to meet the older versions of us? Knowing we were just their souls and memories, but never them…" he fiddled his thumbs. Eddie looked back up to the ceiling, "Well, I met Richtofen before anyone with Samantha. But the fact of being nothing I guess it never bother me."

"Richtofen? You refer to him as if you were two different people." Dempsey questioned. Eddie looked over to see Dempsey frowning his eyebrows. Eddie only smiled, "That's not me, they are someone else entirely... someone a bit like me but not. I am not Edward, nor am I Richtofen. I am not the sadist beasts you've seen before you. I'm Eddie, and that's it. I will not be like them, even if it's my future, and what I have to do. I'll do it differently."


	12. Chapter 12

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> They couldn't be doing this stuff. Maxis made a bad move, and that caused some awful things to happen. Eddie was becoming the one thing he feared the most, and did something he'd normally never do and something the other versions of him would have loved to do.

Maxis walked down the stairs to the basement. He plopped down on a chair close to Monty. Monty hadn't seen him come down, and turned around surprised to see him, "What, cat got your tongue Maxis?" Maxis nodded his head. "I think Eddie might be suffering from an anxiety disorder." Maxis looked down at the ground for a moment, "I don't want to tell Eddie incase he'd worry about the others judging him for it. He does that too often."

"Well, Maxis, if you hadn't noticed both of the others did the same. Only one was a psychopathic bullshitter." 

"They all are psychopathic bullshitters, Monty!" Maxis screamed, "He has anxiety now because later down the road he will suffer of schizophrenia, which is a mixture of depression and anxiety that later causes schizophrenia. Edward will go through all of it, and one of his biggest fears is to become like the future others. No matter how hard he tries to run from it he will always be Edward 'Eddie' Richtofen, the sadist and crazed doctor."

Monty chuckled, "Better not tell Eddie that." Maxis looked over to the table next to him perched against the wall. There was a tall bottle of aged whiskey Monty bought not too long ago. It was already half empty knowing Monty. Maxis reached for the bottle and a glass next to it, "Don't think I know that Monty?" 

Maxis poured some whiskey into the small round glass. "Hey, hey, that's my bloody booze." Maxis only looked at Monty. "Bloody wanker," Monty mumbled taking a sip of his glass of whiskey. Maxis heard soft footstep and looked over. On the stairs there was a shadow of a body within the bright light coming from the basement door. It looked eerie. 

"Daddy?" Samantha's voice mumbled. 

Maxis smiled, "Yes dear?"   
"Is Eddie is going to be okay?"

Maxis paused for a minute before saying anything. "Well, he'll be fine." Samantha continued to stand on the stairs. "But you said that he has schizophrenia, and anxiety, and depression." Maxis stood up, stern and glaring at Sam. He brushed his lab coat off. "Samantha, I think it's time for bed. It's just about nine." Sam only stared at her father for a while longer before doing as told, even if she didn't like it.

Maxis watched his daughter run up the stairs. He let out a soft sigh and shut his eyes. "Well that went wonderfully," Monty picked up his glass and took another sip. Maxis sighed with disappointment in himself, he feared the worst for not only the children, but for Eddie most of all. 

Maxis sat back down and took another sip of his drink. It was a long, long time he was in the basement. It was maybe an hour or so when Monty headed upstairs. But Maxis continued to fill his glass. Glass after glass he drank from full to empty. But maybe It wasn't such a good idea. 

***

"Eddie stop it!" Samantha cried, screaming at the top of her lungs. Nikolai had her in his arms, trying to keep her from running over to Eddie. "STOP IT!" her high pitched squeals pieced Takeo and Nikolai's ears. Eddie sat on top of Dempsey as he continued to swing his fists at each angle.

At this point Dempsey's whole face was bloody. "Takeo STOP THEM!" Sam continued to squeal. Takeo did as told and ran over to Eddie. He grabbed Eddie by the shoulders. But Eddie turned and grabbed Takeo by the shirt. Eddie could see the fear in Takeo's eyes as he held him in the air.

It made Eddie forget what was going on. Eddie jumped when he felt two cold hands wrap around his neck and throw him to the ground. "STOP IT, PLEASE!" Samantha continued to beg more and more as she cried. Dempsey was now on top of Eddie, but they only looked up at Sam. Dempsey ignored her and started punching Eddie, twice as worst as Eddie had.

Samantha couldn't stop screaming and crying. She finally managed to break from Nikolai's arms. She pushed Dempsey, letting him fall backwards, and sat on Eddie. Before she did anything, she slapped Eddie across the face and cried on top of him. She mumbled words under her breath that Eddie couldn't quite understand. 

She grabbed Eddie's hand and stood up. Eddie didn't even have time to get up before Sam dragged him to the bathroom in the next room. Sam pushed Eddie into the bathroom before closing it behind her. Eddie fell backwards to the floor once again. He watched her cry as she scolded him. "What is wrong with you anymore Eddie? He said one thing, one little thing under his breath and you jump him, YOU'RE NOT EVEN SUPPOSED TO BE OUT OF BED DADDY SAID!" 

Eddie felt embarrassed, he looked down and noticed how bloody he was. He stood up and turned to the mirror. His whole face was cover, a large cut above his forehead, bloody streaming from both nostrils, a bruise above the head, and plenty of wounds around his whole body. 

He turned over to the Sam to meet her lodging herself at him. Her small arms wrapped around him tightly while she cried. Eddie reluctantly wrapped his around arms around her, but before he could she pulled back. She placed her two hands on his cheeks and leaned forward. Eddie couldn't believe it, it was breath taking. Literally.


	13. Chapter 13

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Maxis knew it was coming, but he never knew it would come so soon. This would effect Eddie's life forever, and there was nothing to stop it. With what was to come, there was no telling what would happen anymore.

Eddie's breath was taken away almost all at once. It was hard to imagine really, to even think to predict was never to be. Even Eddie was amazed himself. He was almost sure he felt her lips against his. He was positive she didn't just brush them across him, but physically was placed upon. It would have been too long to say she just brushed her lips against his.

Sam finally pulled away, left over tears still streaming down her cheeks. He stared at Sam for a long time without saying anything to her. He started to notice her vibrant eyes or the elegant way her hair moved as she pushed it behind her ears.

Eddie watched her as she turned to the sink. She put a hand towel under the water and soaked it. The purple towel got darker as the water soaked in. She turned back to Eddie and started to clean his face up. Dapping the small towel on his scratches. Eddie started to blush from continuing to stare at Sam.

As she took the towel back, Eddie notices the vast amount of blood. Samantha began to look like she was struggling to speak at the moment. "Why… why did you do that?" Eddie tried to avoid all contact with Sam. She yelled his name and tried to get him to look at her.   
"I'm afraid, Sam." Eddie said. He finally looked Sam in her eyes, "I'm afraid he won't take me seriously if I don't stand up for myself. My other selves already look weak in his eyes… I had to…" he trailed off. Sam looked over at the sink and nodded. She mumbled a soft okay and continued to clean up the bloody wounds. 

She ran the bloody towel under the sink to wash the blood off. The blood thinned and washed down the drain. They suddenly heard yelling from Maxis as he ran up the stairs. "What in heavens name is going on here!?" he yelled. 

There was a knock on the bathroom door. "Samantha Maxis! Get out here right now!" Samantha walked over to the door and opened it. His eyes widened when he saw bloody all over Eddie's face and clothes. "Eddie! What happen!?" 

Maxis looked at Samantha. Sorrow swept over her and she turned her gaze away from her father. Maxis realized the same thing Samantha did. He knew Samantha was intelligent and that he overheard Monty and his conversation. It was already happening. 

"Oh Eddie," Maxis said softly. Eddie turned his head and looked down at the ground, he couldn't look at Maxis anymore. He was too embarrassed at the moment to look at anyone. "Samantha, continue to clean up Eddie and send him downstairs in the basement. I need a talk with him and little Dempsey." 

Samantha nodded and closed the door behind Maxis once he walked away. Sam stood there for a while, then turned to Eddie. She stared at him for a while and watched his face turn red. He continued to look around and avoid try to contact with her. 

Sam walked over to him and gave him a kiss on the forehead. "Come on now, let's go." Eddie followed Samantha to the door.


	14. Chapter 14

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> It was time to tell him what was happening, what was going on within him. It wasn't the easiest thing to do, and no one said it would. But it hurt so much, more than he had expected.

Sam and Eddie walked out of the room into the hall. Maxis and Dempsey were already downstairs, and Nikolai and Takeo were peering out of Eddie's room. They stared at Eddie and Samantha with wide eyes. Samantha only sighed and frowned her eyebrows at them, Eddie continued to wonder why Sam and Maxis were so concerned. 

He had a pit in his stomach that made him want to scream. He couldn't decide if he felt more anxiety or more angry at the moment. He wanted answers, ones that they wouldn't give him and that made him mad. Sam brushed her fingers over Eddie's hand to hold his, but he quickly pulled it away and gave her a disgusted look. 

Sam looked surprised and upset at Eddie, but he didn't wash his expression away. She continued to walk down the steps with him and head down to the basement. Eddie refused to ask any questions, even though they flooded the walls and the spare spaces of his skull. 

They carefully walked down the creaking steps of the basement. Eddie noticed Maxis sitting in a metal fold-up chair with Tank sitting across from him. There was another fold-up chair in between the both, but none for Sam.

Eddie and Sam approached and Maxis gestured for Eddie to sit. Sam walked behind Eddie and rested her hands on the back of the chair. Eddie sat down eyeing Maxis, his heart pounding and his palms sweaty. 

Eddie felt the major anxiety rush over him at once. It was so overwhelming he believed he would pass out once again, but to his surprise he didn’t. He nervously rubbed his hands together, glancing at Tank and Maxis.

Maxis looked down at his hands, clasped so tightly together they were white. He looked up and stared right into Eddie's eyes. "Richtofen, -" Eddie immediately cut him off to correct him, "Eddie." Maxis stared at him then smiled, remembering that this was not who he thought he was. He was not the same man that Maxis guided in the war, he was a boy who was afraid of an unseen future. It killed Maxis inside that the very thing that Eddie feared was what he was developing or becoming really, and he was forced to tell him. 

"Eddie," Maxis corrected himself, "I have to tell you something, something you may not believe or like. This may come out strong or shocking, but I would like you to know that you are still the same person that you had always been and you can still be. We love you no matter what happens to us, " he gestured around the room to Sam and Tank, "or you."

Eddie felt the pit get larger somehow, it was a feeling that his stomach was getting larger and ready to explode. The worst part about it was the fact that Eddie hadn't eaten in a long time and his stomach felt empty, yet so large while the same time. He could almost predict what was going to happen, but Eddie couldn't quite put his finger on what he believed.

Maxis looked down at the ground for a long while, then back up and gazed deep into Eddie's eyes. His eyes were sorrowful and full of tears, and Eddie could hear the pain screaming from his eyes. "Eddie, I believe that you are suffering from the mental disorders that the others have… experienced." 

It was as if the pit was made of glass had just exploded, stabbing and piercing his insides. The idea didn't even register in his brain but he couldn't stop the tears. He was stunned, and just gazed at Maxis for a long time. He could barely manage to breath, let alone speak. But it seemed Tank did it for him, "Like that crazy thing?"

"Schizophrenia, yes." Maxis corrected, "Which is normally followed by depression and anxiety…" 

Suddenly, everything that Eddie had felt so recently made all the sense. The anxiety wasn't only because he was afraid of the other children, but it was his disorder that worsened it. Eddie felt lazy and unable to breath. 

His fear of being his own person, nothing like every other version or soul of him, had come true. He would have to live with the fact that he was in a constant loop that would never break. That slowly killed Eddie in the inside, made him want to curl up in a hole and die. 

He never realized how emotional pain could cause so much physical pain. Eddie felt a strong migraine come on, stabbing pains and aches in his stomach, dizzy, and overly lazy. He just wanted to lie down forever and know nothing or anyone. Simply, he wanted to be alone. 

Then all at once he felt anger, all this anger mixing with more of his emotions confused him. He didn't know how to feel anymore. He just wanted to punch something and scream but instead he cried. That made him feel as if he was frail and weak in front of Tank and Samantha. 

Maxis had tears in his eyes as well, he stood up and walked over to Eddie. He put his arms around Eddie and hugged him tight, "I'm sorry Eddie. I really tried to help you." Eddie's shoulders shuttered and he began to wail.


	15. Chapter 15

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> It was time to relax after the news, to rewind and realize. It was nice to have someone to talk to for once, to be able to understand.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hey guys, after this story is finished I'll be posting another story about Edward Richtofen as a child, from the time he was born and met Maxis and such. It won't be like this one but just the real Richtofen's life.

Eddie sat on the couch with a blanket wrapped around him, holding a fresh cup of hot choclate Maxis made him a few moments ago. Samantha and Tank went back upstairs, and Eddie noticed he hadn't seen the four in a while. He thought he was alone until he heard groanings. 

Eddie decided to ignore them, but then there were soft sniffles. It sounded like it was in the next room, so Eddie put the cup on the coffee table and got up. He slowly walked over to the kitchen door and peered into the room.   
Ironically, it was Nikolai. He sat at the kitchen table with a mug, he seemed to be upset and continued to sniff. Eddie watched Dr. Monty come through the back door that lead to the backyard. Monty came in and greeted Nikolai.

Nikolai immeaditly stood up, "Where are the children Monty." he demanded. Monty only chuckled. He took off a large black coat to reveal the green one he always wore and never took off, he put it on the coat rack behind him. "Monty, I'm serious. What happened with the children?"

"That's none of your concern Belinski. You have a job and the children have nothing to do with it, besides protecting them."

"BUT THE CHILDREN MONTY, they are MY concern." 

Monty held onto his snarky smile, loving the way he made Nikolai so frustrated. "One is in the next room, just found out he has schrizophrenia." Monty walked away into the living room. Luckily Monty didn't see Eddie next to the door and continued to walk. 

Eddie was focused on Monty walking away when he was startled from a voice. "Are you alright, friend?" Eddie jumped and looked at Nikolai with wide eyes. Nikolai smiled warmly and chuckled softly, "Hehe, didn't mean to startle you kiddo." 

Eddie made a quick smile from the corners of his mouth before him and Nikolai made their way to the couch. Nikolai sat down on the couch across from Eddie. Eddie couldn't help but feel depressed, and it killed him even more that it was part of his condition. He will always feel this way. 

"I heard about what happened…" Nikolai trailed off. Eddie felt so weak he couldn't respond with nothing but a "hm-mm". He felt bad for being so rude, but it was harder than you would think. You may think, "Cool, I have a mental disorder." But the disorder eats you from the inside and kills you on the out, your speech, your action, your thoughts, ideas, feelings. 

It was harder for Eddie to take in than he thought, it was his biggest fear. And it had become his reality. Eddie finally scrounged up some strength and courage to speak, "I don't want to be like the rest." His voice sounded so dead in the void of silence, it made the situation feel like someone was dying. 

Nikolai sighed, "I feel your pain little Eddie." Eddie didn't feel so sure about that, but he knew what Nikolai had been through. His beloved wife brutally killed in a war. "I know that you don't believe me Eddie, but I feel the same exact thing." Eddie was creeped out by the fact that it seemed like Nikolai could read his mind.

"I've been drinking more than I've been thinking about her. 

That hit Eddie more than he expected. It was strange, he felt as if a board hit him square in the face. "I feel so sad, spuring the thought that she has passed. I drink and drink to get rid of the awful pains." Eddie watched as he clenched his fist and wiped his eyes. 

Eddie felt bad, sorry for even being so self-centered. "What was she like?" Eddie asked. Nikolai looked up at Eddie. It was an odd sight to be seeing Nikolai crying, red puff eyes and tears streaming down his face. Eddie could see the hurt in his eyes, his eyes glistening under the dim light.


	16. Chapter 16

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> It was now time for it all to happen. Though, Eddie and everyone else don't quite understand what is happening.

Nikolai sighed, and chuckled a bit as if remember a good memory of her. "She was truly beautiful, and kind. She would never let me drink like the way I have." Eddie stared at the ground and began to think of how Richtofen must have felt about losing his family. 

Samantha came running into the living room, "Eddie, you want to come upstairs and play?" Nikolai stood up, "You go up kiddo, I'll sit down here. I'm glad to make sure you are okay." Eddie actually smiled, it wasn't a fake smile. But he realized that Nikolai wasn't as bad as what Richtofen had believed him to be. But maybe if Richtofen was as trust worthy Nikolai would appreciate him.

Eddie slowly stood up and followed Sam. They ran up the stairs and in to Samantha's room. Young Nikolai, Takeo, and Dempsey sat in a circle, all staring at Eddie. Eddie felt a rush of anxiety with all the attention. Sam must have noticed, putting her hand on his shoulder, "Come on Eddie." 

Eddie walked over to the children and sat down in their circle. "I'm sorry Eddie," Takeo mumbled looking at Eddie. Eddie faked a small smile and nodded, "Thanks." Eddie turned to Little Nikolai, who patted his back. He guessed Samantha must have told them what happened.

Tank only stared at Eddie for a long time. Eddie assumed that Tank was going to hold a grudge over the fight, but nothing happened. It was as if his soul was being extracted from his body with the little boy's bright eyes. 

Eddie shifted to get in a comfortable sitting position. Samantha covered the side of her face as if she were to tell Eddie a secret. She snuck a kiss on his cheek and returned to the other boys. Eddie could feel his face heating up, and hoping the other's hadn't noticed.

There was suddenly a bunch of rumbling. It seemed as if there was an earthquake, but somehow Eddie could tell that wasn't what was happening. He had a strange feeling in his gut that persisted to nag at him. He couldn't shake the feeling off for some reason. 

It was a sense that something bad was happening. But Eddie couldn't tell what was so bad. Eddie stood up and fell back into Sam's bed. The children all had looks of horrify marked on their expressions.

"Richtofen! What's happening?" Tank asked. Eddie wished he knew, and he remember all the questions he asked that one night a few days ago. And maybe it was time though. Maybe it was the plan Maxis was talking about, or the failure that Maxis feared.


	17. Chapter 17

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> It almost seemed to be very sudden. Things that seemed normal were vanishing quickly. None of them had understood what had been happening. It was all so chaotic for them

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I AM FINALLY BEEN ABLE TO GET THIS CHAPTER DONE. Sorry for being so late and inactive. I knew how I wanted it to go but I just couldn't write it for the longest time. But I'm sure the other chapters will come along a lot better now.

Everything began to shake and the children began to hear Maxis yelling. Eddie suddenly felt a pit in his stomach. He looked over at Sam and slowly inched his fingers to hers. She looked confused and worried all at the same time. Sam turned to him with a tear streaming down her cheek. Eddie rubbed her hands softly in an attempt to make her feel comfortable. 

But it didn't seem to work as well as he expected. Everyone started to panic. Nikolai stood up and shouted, "LOOK!" All the children stood up and saw everything collapsing down. Their perfect world was crashing down on them. Monty ran through the doors, "Kids, come downstairs, now." He turned around and ran back down the hall. Eddie held tight to Samantha's hand as they ran downstairs. 

They ran all the way down to the basement. Monty looked at them, "Stay down here and don't move, don't touch anything. Just stay." With that Monty ran upstairs. There was yelling and screaming from the four and Monty. It sounded as if there was a tornado right above them. 

Eddie looked over and saw one of the beams beginning to crack. He looked down and saw Dempsey standing there. Dempsey looked too stunned to realize what else was happening. Eddie made a quick move and pushed Dempsey out of the way. The beam fell and almost crushed them both. "Are you alright…?" Eddie stuttered. 

He didn't know he was ever capable of doing such a thing. Dempsey looked at him for a while, seeming as astonished as Eddie had been. "Yeah, I… uh… believe so." Eddie backed up and looked out of the tiny basement window on the wall. 

"It's all being torn down…" little Nikolai mumbled. Eddie turned and looked at him, "What do you mean?" Tank stepped forward with an attitude as if he was angry. "What do you mean Richtofen? You're the one who is supposed to understand this all." 

Eddie suddenly felt awful. He felt as if it were his duties to know the exact science of what had been happening. But he didn’t, he didn't understand anything that was going on. All he could think of was Maxis's "big plan". But this couldn't have been it, could it? 

Eddie looked over at a desk cluttered with Maxis's technology, journals, and loose pieces of paper. He slowly approached it and began to scan everything. There was a small leather journal that seemed to stand out from all the rest. He picked it up and read the white patch sewn on the cover. 

It had said, "Personal Journal". Eddie opened it and began to scan over the words. Some of it had mentioned a lot about Samantha. It was most definitely nothing about his research at all. In fact, as Eddie flipped through the pages it talked more about his love and devotion to Samantha and his "girlfriend" Sophia. Then one word caught Eddie's eye. 

"The voices…" It seemed to stick out like a sore thumb and Eddie began to read more carefully into it. "The voices… they won't stop. He keeps begging me to set him free, that he will save us all. But that would be erroneous. Monty was to set the plans with me, we were going to stick to it and that was all." A few pages skipped had his last words… "I can't take it anymore… I must find out what this is. It's coming from the Summoning Key."   
Eddie stopped dead in his tracks and dropped the book on the floor. He dropped to the floor screaming and crying. He felt a suddenly pounding headache hit only one spot of his head. It seemed to have been a migraine, and the crying would not make it any better. He was losing his breath as if there had been a large weight on his chest. ��He was also at a loss for words. When the children ran to him to see what was wrong he couldn't tell them. His words had been shoved down his throat and glued there. He couldn't get the pit in his stomach out. But somehow he knew exactly what had happened. Though it was vague, he could see almost what happened. 

There were yellow bright lights, Maxis screaming, and then there were just some black leather dress shoes. He couldn't see anymore. He laid on the floor crying and screaming, even kicking at some attempts to make the pain stopped. 

He couldn't hear anything around him but ringing. It wasn't any sort of ringing that he had heard though. It was long and eerie, it just wouldn't take a break. He knew he was crying but he couldn't hear himself. He couldn't see anything but the blur of his tears. What had happened to Maxis?


	18. Chapter 18

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Something had scared them all, and they wished it wall all normal again. Things were not going to plan at all.

"This is such bullshit..." Monty mumbled to himself as the four men walked out of the house. He watched at Tank Dempsey leaped over the banister and started guns blazing. "Not zhe besht of ideash, but I guesh it vill have to do..." Edward said as he carefully climbed down. Takeo and Nikolai leaped over as well, making Edward loose footing and fall down.

There were high pitched squeal and a thud. Monty only chuckled to himself, "What a bunch of asses."

***

Eddie sat in the corner and cried to himself. He had finally calmed down, just a tad though. He didn't have the heart to tell Samantha. That would crush her heart just as much as it crushed his. Eddie knew that Maxis was gone, not only could he feel it in his gut but from the voices. He was taught a bit about the Summoning Key, but what he didn't understand is why Maxis, the one who had taught him in the first place, would not follow the precautions. It just seemed absurd.

He watched the other kids in the room. They were sitting down fiddling with their thumbs. Though Eddie could see Tank eyeing him in the distance. He seemed to keep a close eye on Eddie. Eddie shifted his gaze to the floor.

There was a crack in the ground and he watched a large spider crawl out. The spider was all black with yellow patterns on its back. It stopped and stared at Eddie then turned and crawled away. Eddie only sighed.

 

He couldn't believe the only father figure in his life was gone. He didn't know if they'd be able to get Maxis back. "Hey, guys look," Sam shouted as she pointed to the small window. "Someone give me a boost." Nikolai walked over to her and pictured her up.

"Ow! Your freakishly long nails are digging into my thighs." 

"Never mind that, what's up there?" Nikolai grumbled.

Samantha craned her neck to see what was happening. "The zombies are back..." Eddie's eyes opened wide with surprise. He jumped up, "What do you mean?" He could feel his heart beating in his throat. The pit in his stomach wanted to explode.

"Hurry, I'm losing balance." Nikolai seemed to struggle to hold Sam. Samantha slowly began to slide down from Nikolai's arms. Eddie also noticed someone was missing. He looked around and saw Takeo curdled up in the corner of the basement. He almost seemed lost in the dark. 

Eddie walked over to Takeo. Takeo looked up at Eddie with wide, brown eyes. "I don't like it here anymore..." Takeo murmured as he tucked his legs into his stomach. Eddie frowned his eyebrows and took a seat next to Takeo. 

"What...? Why do you say that?" Eddie asked. Takeo looked over at Eddie. His eyes seemed to be tearing up, and it had been the first Eddie had seen Takeo like this. "Everything was supposed to be perfect, we were supposed to live normal and happy lives. But now everything is falling apart..." Takeo stuttered over his words as he to cry.

Eddie was a bit shocked and didn't know what to do or to say. He kind of just stood there for a while and pondered what Takeo had said. And he was right, this wasn't supposed to be hell. It was supposed to be a perfect little world where they would live all the things the originals hadn't.

They were supposed to go to school, have small family dinners with each other, get old, marry, and just do as normal lives had. But with all the crazy things, no one could ever forget what happened. Nor would they be able to live a normal life knowing all as such.

It started to get a little too overwhelming for Eddie...


	19. Chapter 19

Tank jumped in front of Edward and took a hit to the chest. Tank fell to the ground with a grunt. This gave Richtofen enough time to shoot the zombie. The head popped off, and the zombie stood still for a bit before falling backwards. Edward dropped to his knees to help Dempsey, "Do you need any medical assistance?" ��Tank nodded, "Nah, I think I'll be good." Richtofen sighed, slightly concerned for his friend. Dempsey realized something, why had Richtofen been so worried about his health state? He got up and decided to let it slide for this once.

***

All the kids were quiet and kept to themselves. They didn't say a word to each other, and it began to make Eddie nervous again. He started to feel anxious and jittery, knowing something awful will happen. He was just waiting for the inevitable to happen. 

Though, the room wasn't very quiet. There were loud growling, screaming, and gun shots. It was almost impossible to sleep everything away. But Eddie wouldn't be able to sleep any how. He was worried about Maxis and what would happen to him. The pit in his stomach nagged at him like never before. As much as he tried to ignore it, it wouldn't stop bothering him. He had so much to worry about, and he was only a kid. 

A few days had passed and the kids sat in the basement, barely eating and starving. Eddie just wanted to go back to when everything was simple again, when it was just him and Samantha. When they would sit and play with their dolls.

He knew none of that would happen again. Suddenly, the children heard the basement door open and light began to shine through the doors. Monty came down the stair. He looked rather upset and disappointed. Eddie watched Samantha walk over to the window, but he continued to huddle around Monty with the rest of the kids.��Monty looked at each and everyone of the children then looked over to see Samantha staring through the basement window. Eddie noticed that he clenched his fist as he watched her. He turned and watched her, then walked over to her. "Eddie… I… I'm sorry…" Monty said. Eddie stopped and looked at him, then to the window. ��He was far behind Samantha, but could still see what was happening. He watched in horror at what he believed to see was Maxis and Sophia sacrificing themselves. Suddenly, once they went into the light and Eddie could no longer see them the whole world suddenly changed. ��It began to rumble again, and the world went back to they way it was. Samantha fell to her knees and began to cry. She wailed loud enough that it echoed in the basement. She began to quiver as she started to scratch the floor.��Eddie ran over to her and wrapped his arms around her as he cried too. "Oh Eddie…" she managed to mumble. Eddie couldn't help but start wailing with her. He couldn't say anything, his words were stuck in his throat. 

The one person he could trust, who loved him, who was a father to him was now dead. And he watched it all. Eddie couldn't even explain how he felt, and all he wanted to do was die. He couldn't handle it anymore. And gripped onto Samantha tighter than before. She rested her head on his chest and cried. ��"Eddie.…what are we gonna do now?" Eddie couldn't even begin to answer that. He didn't know either. He looked up and look at the children, who seemed upset but not as disturbed as Sam and Eddie. No one could feel what they felt. Eddie couldn't imagine how awful it must have been for Samantha either. ��Right after she lost her father the first time, tried to change history and everything, he was taken away from her again. This time she couldn't do anything about it. ��It would be hard for the both of them to move on, to go on with normal lives. Not only for Eddie and Sam, but the others too. Eventually, Monty dealt with the Original Four. They weren't allowed to say any last good byes, but Eddie could feel Richtofen's sorrow. 

Eddie and Samantha stayed close, really close. They made sure they were there for each other, and Eddie tried to stay strong for her. Though on his own time he would cry about it. He could always hear the voice of Monty in the back of his head, assuring him things would be fine. This helped keep Eddie going. But in his teen years Eddie lost all sanity and was just like he was in the loop. �  
His greatest fear caught up with him, but Samantha still stayed by his side. All the others still were close with Eddie and Sam, but never would they have the same bond they the two had. Samantha was the only one Eddie would trust, and it went the same for her as well. 

And this was the end to it all. To everything Eddie was stressed about, he didn't have to worry about it as much anymore. It was the end.


End file.
